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Document 52008IP0512
Evaluation of the Australia-EU PNR agreementEuropean Parliament recommendation of 22 October 2008 to the Council concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian customs service (2008/2187(INI)
Evaluation of the Australia-EU PNR agreementEuropean Parliament recommendation of 22 October 2008 to the Council concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian customs service (2008/2187(INI)
Evaluation of the Australia-EU PNR agreementEuropean Parliament recommendation of 22 October 2008 to the Council concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian customs service (2008/2187(INI)
SL C 15E, 21.1.2010, p. 46–50
(BG, ES, CS, DA, DE, ET, EL, EN, FR, IT, LV, LT, HU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SL, FI, SV)
21.1.2010 |
EN |
Official Journal of the European Union |
CE 15/46 |
Wednesday 22 October 2008
Evaluation of the Australia-EU PNR agreement
P6_TA(2008)0512
European Parliament recommendation of 22 October 2008 to the Council concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian customs service (2008/2187(INI))
2010/C 15 E/09
The European Parliament,
having regard to the proposal for a recommendation to the Council by Sophia in 't Veld on behalf of the ALDE Group on the Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian customs service (B6-0383/2008),
having regard to Articles 2, 6, 24, 29 and 38 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) which are the legal foundation for a European area of freedom, security and justice and for international negotiations with third countries and organisations as far as police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters are concerned,
having regard to Council Decision 2008/651/CFSP/JHA of 30 June 2008 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of an Agreement between the European Union and Australia on the processing and transfer of European Union-sourced passenger name record (PNR) data by air carriers to the Australian Customs Service (1) and to the Agreement itself,
having regard to the fact that according to TEU Article 24(5), that Agreement is currently binding on a provisional basis only on those Member States which did not issue statements to the effect that they had to comply with their own constitutional procedure, as did Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland and Finland (2),
having regard to the fact that, in view of the legal base chosen for the abovementioned Council Decision, namely TEU Articles 38 and 24 (the latter of which refers to external relations), TEU Article 21 would require the Presidency to consult Parliament on the main aspects and the basic choices of the common foreign and security policy,
having regard to its previous resolutions and recommendations on the PNR issue (3),
having regard to Article 8(2) of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR) and Article 3(2) and Article 6(1) of Council Directive 2004/82/EC of 29 April 2004 on the obligation of carriers to communicate passenger data (4),
having regard to the basic principles of loyal cooperation between the institutions, which imply that Parliament will be fully informed and consulted and to the fact that Parliament was not even informed of the pending negotiations by the Commission and/or the Council, contrary to what happened in the case of other PNR- related Agreements and even during the first round of negotiations with Australia in 2003/2004 (5),
having regard to the fact that notwithstanding the unwillingness of the other institutions, Parliament should take a position on a matter which affects the fundamental rights of citizens and which is also currently under discussion as a possible subject for EU legislation,
having regard to Rule 114(3) and Rules 83(5) and 94 of its Rules of Procedure,
having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (A6-0403/2008),
1. |
Addresses the following recommendations and observations to the Council: Procedural aspects
Scope and purpose
Data protection
|
2. |
Invites the Member States and the national parliaments which are currently examining this Agreement and/or the one with the US (Belgium, the Czech Republic, Spain, Hungary, the Netherlands and Poland) to take in account the observations/recommendations raised above; |
3. |
Reminds the Council that in the event of the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, Parliament should be associated on a fair basis with the review of all the PNR agreements; |
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4. |
Instructs its President to forward this recommendation to the Council and, for information, to the Commission and to the governments and parliaments of the Member States and to the government and parliament of Australia. |
(1) OJ L 213, 8.8.2008, p. 47.
(2) Some of the Member States adopted specific declarations published in the Council Minutes and accessible at the following address: http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/08/st10/st10439.en08.pdf
(3) Parliament resolutions of 13 March 2003 on transfer of personal data by airlines in the case of transatlantic flights (OJ C 61 E, 10.3.2004, p. 381), of 9 October 2003 on transfer of personal data by airlines in the case of transatlantic flights: state of negotiations with the USA (OJ C 81 E, 31.3.2004, p. 105) and of 31 March 2004 on the draft Commission decision noting the adequate level of protection provided for personal data contained in the Passenger Name Records (PNRs) transferred to the US Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (OJ C 103 E, 29.4.2004, p. 665), recommendation of 7 September 2006 to the Council on the negotiations for an agreement with the United States of America on the use of passenger name records (PNR) data to prevent and combat terrorism and transnational crime, including organised crime (OJ C 305 E, 14.12.2006, p. 250) and position of 7 July 2005 on the proposal for a Council decision on the conclusion of an Agreement between the European Community and the Government of Canada on the processing of Advance Passenger Information (API)/Passenger Name Record (PNR) data (OJ C 157 E, 6.7.2006, p. 464).
(4) OJ L 261, 6.8.2004, p. 24.
(5) The Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs took note of these negotiations also on the basis of the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party's opinion on this subject. See: http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/fsj/privacy/docs/wpdocs/2004/wp85_en.pdf
(6) OJ L 204, 4.8.2007, p. 18.
(7) Council of Europe Convention of 28 January 1981 for the protection of individuals with regard to automatic processing of personal data and subsequent amendments thereto.
(8) OJ L 281, 23.11.1995, p. 31.